The temperature is a right brisk seventeen degrees this morning! The moon is eleven per cent full and is a waning crescent. The sky is clear but around the horizon hovers a band of blue-purple clouds, ominous in the pale sky. The weatherman is saying that by Friday, we may indeed have another round of snow. And, now that the meteorological signs are out of the way, let me say that the moon, a few minutes ago, was beautiful! One lone star hung just above it, very near it seemed, but it didn’t show up in the picture.
Looking at the photo, I realized that the scene could have been anywhere, London, perhaps? A country estate? The tangle of winter tree limbs, the newly awakened sky, the last glimpse of the moon, could be almost any place on earth or–find itself reproduced in the pages of a cozy mystery! But, no, it was right here in NW Arkansas, right here at home! That beautiful moon was the same, no matter where on earth I might have been. Beauty is all around me, and it doesn’t cost a thing! All I have to do is recognize it.
The cold, crisp air brought more than a hint of snow with it this morning. It brought the scent of a skunk. Now, I know that small, wild animals prowl through the neighborhood at night but skunks, I am not fond of. On my “Likable Animals” scale, they rank about the same as groundhogs. They are fine in their natural habitat but I sure wish they’d leave my habitat alone!
This is a perfect day for our cozy critique and, as I said before, I value the input of each critiquer. As I go deeper into this new mystery, their opinions become more critical. With such a beautiful start to this day and the critiquers’ visit in the middle of it, the fireplace blazing, coffee and hot chocolate added, no matter the weather forecast, it is bound to be a cozy winter day!
February 26, 2014
Your second paragraph reminds me of a song Linda Rhonstadt sang several years ago in a Disney movie: Somewhere out there
beneath the pale moonlight
Someone’s thinking of me and loving me tonight
Somewhere out there someone’s
saying a prayer
That we’ll find one another in that dream somewhere out there
And even though I know how very far apart we are
It helps to think we might be wishin’
on the same bright star
And when the night wind starts to sing
a lonesome lullaby
It helps to think we’re sleeping
underneath the same big sky
Somewhere out there, if love can see us through (love can see us
through)
Then we’ll be together somewhere out
there
Out where dreams come true—